Korean BBQ Burrito

Alright kids, enough playing around. It’s time to get food serious over here.

Let’s start by loading a soft flour tortilla with ridiculously tasty garlicky-n-gingery beef, spicy kimchi, steaming white rice, cilantro and basil and just generally herbs to the max, and a big dollop of yum yum sauce. Like a burrito mashup.

And then we shall follow that up by loosely calling it a fusion-style Korean BBQ Burrito.

The ultimate definition of food serious right there.

HOW TO MAKE OUR KOREAN BBQ BURRITO (40 SEC):

And now, for a brief breakdown of all the ways in which this recipe and recipe title is delicious and not technically correct.

First – the meat is not *technically* BBQ as in hot grill BBQ. I put it in the slow cooker because it was easier that way. And then it turned out SO DELICIOUS that I couldn’t go back. So, I dunno, go on and judge me. But also, BBQ would also be delicious.

Second – Korean is a loose descriptor. I claim no authenticity (it’s a Korean burrito, so right there we’re in trouble). I DID watch several videos to learn how to make Korean-style beef and I AM using kimchi to attempt legitimacy, but mostly this is just me playing around with the beloved flavors and styles of Korean-influenced, Mexican-style street food.

And finally, for an exciting piece of news: these are actually SO easy to make (see pics with labels) and they will provide you with a heavy duty bangkok burrito stock pile for your freezer which is awesome for times like, say, just as an example, the empty-fridge day after a Fourth of July weekend.

We may or may not have made these into loaded tacos over the Fourth of July weekend and our besties may or may not have declared them the BEST TACOS they’ve ever had and if you need me I’ll just be over here making triple batches of the meat for future taco and burrito needs, okay?

KOREAN BBQ BEEF: Thinly slice the beef and pulse the pear, garlic, and ginger through a food processor. Put all the ingredients for the beef in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 3-5 hours or until very tender and delicious.

Lay a flour tortilla flat on a piece of foil. Place the rice, meat, herbs, kimchi, and sauce in the middle of the tortilla. Fold the sides up, then roll it up front to back and wrap it with foil if you're saving it for later. (We freeze these for easy dinners and lunches, and we also eat many of them immediately because they're so darn good.)

Notes

Warming the tortilla a bit makes it easier to roll.

I've also done the meat on low in the slow cooker for about 9 hours and it was still really good, but a little more dry than the shorter time on high heat, so go for the shorter time if you can. I've also done this in a traditional BBQ sense (like, on a hot skillet or grill, for example, this recipe) and that is equally as good.

If you can't find kimchi, just toss a store-bought coleslaw mix with the spicy mayo or yum yum sauce. You won't get the tang of the fermentation, but the crunch is on point.

Also -- extra filling makes for great tacos!

3.5.3208

Guys, these are high calorie. We just need to face the facts. Or not face the facts. I am not including nutrition facts for these because they would vary so much based on how much of each ingredient you put into your burrito. Burritos are just so personal, ya know? But pro tip – if/when you need to eat this and you don’t want it to be the biggest meal of your life, you can a) drop the rice (sad, but I’ll understand) or b) eat all the fillings sans tortilla in a bowl! Korean BBQ Burrito Bowl? Winning.

Hmm, not really – the beef is a pretty big part of this one! You could try tofu but I have no idea how it would turn out. And probably not the best suited for the slow cooker. Thanks for the comment Joanna!

I’ve been to restaurants that sub jackfruit for meat in vegan dishes. My friend has had it as a pulled pork substitute and says she can’t tell that it’s not meat, becausethe texture is so close. I think you might try that?

this looks great, and I appreciate you posting this recipe. I’m not sure about the title of this recipe though, there’s a big difference between Korean food (as I am Korean) and food from Bangkok. maybe you’re going for a fusion or something, but this recipe clearly reads like it’s suppose to be Korean (the beef and kimchee). I don’t quite follow where the thai is coming in… maybe I’m being too sensitive as it is your blog… thanks!

No LJ, you are not being sensitive. Because as another Korean American myself, this makes me furious.

Lindsay, I appreciate your attempt at making Korean inspired food. Sure, you can name the dish whatever you want. However, just remember that we Koreans pride ourselves of our food and its history that comes with it. Our food is something that we, Korean immigrants, hold very dearly to our hearts. It’s more than just food. It’s one of a few ways of remembering home.

There’s ZERO connection between Korea and Bangkok in this dish except that it’s your ‘current place of summer in life.’ First, it’s an inaccurate description of the dish since there’s no hint of Thai influence. Stop connecting to completely different cultures, without legitimate reason, just because you feel like it. What you are doing here is mixing up ‘exotic ethnic’ foods (in this specific case it’s just word play) without any understanding of the origin. I mean, does Greek Paris burritos make any sense to you? Can you make a Greek food inspired burritos and throw Paris into it just because you feel like it?

Second, you are making profit off of ‘Korean inspired food’ when you don’t even really know what the Korean food is. Your blog is huge and you are making money off of displaying ads and what not. Taking a few well known ingredients (kimchi and bulgogi) of the specific cousin without even taking time to understand what the cousin is, its tradition, and what makes it good or bad is plain insulting. You are making profit with no knowledge of Korean food. You are undermining integrity of Korean cousin and its long history. Please think about impact of your post before you publish it. To you it’s an experiment but to us our food means our home.

Experimenting is great and outsider’s view can be taken seriously. However, if you are going to post something publicly, especially when you are making money from it, think twice. You cannot run business without having proper knowledge of your field.

Hi Sara, thanks for chiming in. The term “Bangkok Burritos” is one that WSK uses for ALL their fusion-type burritos, whether they hold chicken curry or bulgogi or fried tofu. That’s where that name came from, since it was inspired from one of the burritos at their restaurant. We take all those suggestions seriously, especially when it comes to those regarding cultural sensitivity as it relates to food, which is why I changed the title. Thanks for your input.

Perhaps you should just omit the “Bangkok” in the recipe title rather than deflect responsibility as something light-hearted and unintentionally offensive. As another Korean-American, I am offended at your racial insensitivity to this title and at how you downplayed your response when another commented at the two cultures being unrelated. While the recipe looks interesting, your response was unacceptable and insensitive. Please take the “Bangkok” out of this recipe title for the same reason you initially added it on … not because this is summer but because it matters to you that it offends some of the people who make up your audience!

Hi KAP, thank you for your input. It does matter to me and I am sorry for brushing it off before. I have adjusted the recipe title – thank you again for the constructive criticism that helps make POY better for everyone.

Wow Sara, way to be a triggered special snowflake. May I mirror your ridiculousness and say a Korean with the name Sarah is culturally appropriating a Western name. How insensitive of you and your parents. You mention “profit” over and over. Sounds like a hater to me.

Please don’t call this a Bangkok Burrito if it has nothing Thai about it. You are essentially lumping all Asians together and that’s racist and naive.

If you actually are open to constructive criticism, please educate yourself about how to be respectful of other cultures. Start with the simplest thing – recognizing that each country has their own culture. I don’t expect you to understand what minorities feel like when they’re all bunched together as if their individual identities didn’t matter, but I hope you can at least try to be respectful of their different cultures.

I’d like to agree here. I’m not Korean, and I’m not Thai, but throwing in another Asian city name because it helps with the alliteration seems like a culturally ignorant move. From my perspective, as a non-Asian, if you wanna keep the words “Korean” and “Bangkok” in the title, add something Thai to the dish and chalk it up to uninformed White Girl whimsy. Otherwise, pick one of the other. And for the guy coming in here and calling people snowflakes, go ahead and move halfway around the world, try creating a life for yourself in a racially insensitive country and then have the locals lump your culture in with someone completely unrelated to you. I’d wager, it’d push your buttons too. That’s my $.02. PS. Your Chocolate Chip Cookies are freaking amazing. Thanks!

OMG–So shall we start renaming all of our recipes that do not stay true to the original ethnicity of the foods or cooking methods used in that recipe? What about the mashup recipe names of Italian, French, Polish, Spanish, and the rest of the world’s cooking? Please!? Or does this just pertain to the Asian community? As a daughter of first generation Italian immigrants, we did (and still do) experience racially charged attitudes, but we managed to meld our ethnicity with the culture of the U.S. while also maintaining our true cultural heritage and customs. If you desire and demand ethnic purity in all areas of U.S. culture and doctrine, i.e. the melting pot, then perhaps the United States is not where you should be. FYI, the diversity of cultures in the U.S. is one of the aspects of American culture that I love and chastising over something which is so petty in the big scheme of things only gives merit to haters’ arguments, as we can all attest to in today’s climate. And that’s my 2 cents!

P.S. Lindsay, I did make this! I toasted tortillas over the gas burner, and all I can say is that there were no leftovers for MY lunch.

Sara, Jen, Joe, Kap,
Lindsay seems like one of the sweetest people on earth through reading so many of her posts and following her stories. She is a person with feelings and a heart, just as you all are. Please think about how you speak to people and remember that often times, people’s intensions are pure and not meant to harm you, just as I believe Lindsay’s were in this post. I know it’s easier to hurt people through social media when you feel angry, but please, please think twice about it next time. Maybe a simple, “Hey Lindsay, this post upset me because of ______. I’m sure you didn’t mean to hurt me in anyway, but it did and I just thought you would want to know.” Or try sending her an email to calmly talk through your thoughts rather than posting for so many to read. People matter. Words can hurt. Use yours to encourage and to be a light in this dark world. You all are loved! <3

hahaha <3 I love the blurb about nutrition…it means I need to make this now. LOL.
And thank you for not being afraid to throw out non-traditional recipes…it can be difficult since us food bloggers cant be pro about every single type of cuisine out there but still want to grab inspo from them! Thanks for making it okay to name your food whatever the heck ya want and make it fun 😀 <3

A good meat substitute is canned Young Green Jackfruit in water, which is available at Asian grocery stores. (For about $1.20 a can here, but also on amazon, just more expensive) It is pretty flavorless on its own, but has a stringy texture that makes it seem very meaty! We smoke it and mix with BBQ sauce for my husband’s vegetarian family members!

Made these last night – awesome! Only thing I did different was use an Asian style red cabbage I had made the night before because I didn’t have kimchi. Loved the Yum Yum sauce.! I had mine bowl style to avoid the gluten – but the rest of family used the shells. We were all happy!

I seem to have fallen down a rabbit hole with your site! I have been planning my next month’s worth of weekend meals, but have a question for you.

This recipe for Korean BBQ Bangkok Burritos has a similar treatment for the Sirloin as your Korean BBQ Yum Yum Rice Bowls, but the ingredient measures are less for the marinade for the burritos. Is there any reason for this, or are you just looking for a little less intensity for the burrito meat?

Hi there! I have been doing a food blog for one of my college classes, so i decided that it was about time to take a look at some professional blogs! 🙂 I have to say that your blog looks amazing!! These Korean BBQ Bangkok burritos look to die for and I am definitely going to have to make these for my boyfriend in the near future!

Made this for dinner and it was awesome! My young daughter loved it. We tried the suggestion of making your yum yum sauce and mixing it with bagged coleslaw and it was really flavorful. We ate leftovers for days, both in and out of a burrito and we liked it both ways. Definitely a keeper

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